Moonlight episode 2 "Out of the Past" and other fanish ramblings
Texas plays OU today so I'll post on Smallville later after my poor Longhorns lose...so sad...but first I already posted some thoughts on Moonlight's second episode elsewhere so I figured I'd elaborate on them here.
Ok so the second episode of Moonlight wasn't exactly the worst thing ever, it did improve over the pilot, but there are still things about it that annoy.
Mick and Vampire 101:
So what's the first thing that completely baffled me about Mick in this episode? The fact that in 50 years he still has the same name, profession, and probably lives in the same place. Dude did you not recieve the Vampire's Guide for the Recently Undead or did you simply not bother to read it. The people around you will age but you'll stay the same meaning that as difficult as it may be you are going to have to sever ties to people who knew you after a couple of years. Yeah it sucks and you didn't choose to become a vampire but get with the program and play the hand you're dealt.
Now I know why the creators chose to have Mick be less than a century old because this guy lacks some crucial brain cells and common sense and it's going to get him exposed so fast he won't know what hit him. And seriously he needs to get himself a new BFF because if Mr. Paranoid Josef hasn't brought up these issues before then...
Mick was extremely fortunate that the old cop that he kept in touch with was blind. For a minute I thought he was going to be in on Mick's background and that would have annoyed. It's kind of like in Smallville when now everybody knows about Clark's secret except for Lex, Lois, and Jimmy. It was clever on the writer's part to have the cop be blind though and therefore unable to see that Mick hadn't aged.
The second thing that baffled me about Mick was his apparent lack of concern for his safety. He has got to have the worst security of any living in the real world onscreen vampire. I want to know more about that building Mick is living in because apparently just about anybody can waltz right in. What is this the Luthor Mansion in Smallville? Does he have neighbors? Does he own the building? Is it in an isolated locale or smack dab in the middle of downtown LA? I expected some kind of super sophisticated security system not just a video camera to see who's on the other side of the door when a simple peep hole would have sufficed there. You want a live to see another 100 years Mick get yourself a new setup.
All that being said a highlight for me was the end of the episode but not because it finally ended. I certainly felt the ol' heart strings being tugged in those last scenes with Beth when she walks into his apartment and he's feeding. Mick sees himself as a monster when it comes to what humans might think if they were to find out about what he is and his pleas for her to leave were really heartfelt. I like my vampires with the occassion hint of angst so that made me go yay. I realize people role their eyes at yet another angst filled vampire but I say bring'em on.
Flashbacks to that ancient time known as the 1980s:
This was hands down the best part of the episode. It cracked me up to no end. Whoo-Hoo! 1983 baby! Although fashion wise the clothing was filtered through the 2007 idea of 1983. I mean the clothes in the Nick Knight pilot screamed 80s and that one was set in 1989 Los Angeles. Heck the first season of Forever Knight screamed more 1980s than the ones in Moonlight. But those 80s fashions in general were pretty ugly so I can see why the Moonlight costume department would much rather downplay their awfulness. After all the music was the cue that told the audience what decade it was. But seriously I hope they start fleshing out Mick's past. Apparently he was all into Josef's lifestyle which isn't surprising since Josef was the guy that showed him the vampire ropes but next time let's keep the 80stastic girls at home with the "80s" music and show some actual Mick/Josef back story. "Hungry like the wolf" ::snort::
Will the real Josef please stand up:
Josef as seen it all vampire is totally not impressing me if he's failing to instill the vampire 101 in his young friend. He tells Mick that he knows someone who can set him up with a new identity midway through the episode. That information would have been good a few decades ago. Granted he's not Mick's keeper but they are friends. The proper percautions, at least home security wise, could have gone a long way in this episode.
GIven Josef's paranoia in the pilot, his "We Must Protect the Secret Mick!" mentatlity, coupled with his insistance that Mick do something to prevent it from getting out Josef in this episode was pretty lackadasial on the matter and treated exposure like a minor inconvenience. While I did find the delivery of Josef's line "You were on the news" very cute that's beside the point. Mick's involvement was being picked up by a lot of media outlets. That kind of exposure has got to be a big no-no for the vampire community. Beth works for an internet new organization. As they said in the episode their site had 2 million hits in one day. That means the story about Mick won't be limited to the Los Angeles area so anybody with computer access around the world would have seen Mick in his present incarnation. That might not expose vampires directly but could come back to bite him in the butt like the released convict in some future incarnation. I sincerely hope that in future episodes they shed some light on the dyamics within the vampire community because it needs to be addressed. Thankfully next week's episode is about a renegade vampire so I'm really excited for it. This show needs an Enforcers like entity like in Forever Knight. Even LaCroix would much rather not get mixed up with them.
The good:
This episode was better than the last although the recap of that episode almost made me want to shut the tape off there. Please don't make me relive it please.
What I found as this episode's strength was the story with the released killer. I liked the whole "I'm a killer and you've killed. What makes us so different?" thing. Plus I liked the way all the setups just completely rattled Mick. This came totally out of left field and put him on the defensive. I realize I've been pretty harsh towards Mick and Josef and this is only the second episode. If the show survives there will be plenty of time to explore some of the issues that I have problems with. This show has a lot of potential. The subject matter is busting at the seams with story ideas and the possibility for different spins on old story ideas. I'll more than likely catch the episode again so that I can go into further detail what did work for me in this episode. I am after all recording them on the off chance that I become obsessed with this show and can therefore revisit it from a real fangirl perspective.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
So the Fall 2007 has finished week two and shows are still not done premiering. Here's a status report:
Bionic Woman: I caught the pilot last week and wasn't all that impressed although I did love the evil Bionic Woman otherwise known as Starbuck from Battlestar Galactica. She was far more interesting to me than poor bland Britsh actor playing American #231. I've read that she's done some very nice work in her other projects but I fear that this time the material might be too overwhelming. Needless to say I didn't catch the second episode but I'll be following the scuttlebut and decide whether or not to revisit sometime during midseason. Sometimes actors and shows need time to establish themselves. Since NBC spent oodles promoting I hope they don't cancel too prematurely.
Journeyman: I love Quantum Leap. It was my first non-cartoon show back when I was younger, excluding all the Nickelodeon/Nick-at-Nite stuff I used to watch. So when I heard of this show I was immediately excited plus I loved Rome and Kevin McKidd was great as Lucius Vorenus on it. Unfortunately our NBC affiliate crapped out so I couldn't watch the pilot but I did watch the second episode "The Friendly Skies" and I really enjoyed it. The "leap" into the circa 1970s airplane complete with cabin filled smoke, crazy flight attendents, and the requisite period music was a real hoot as was Vorenus' attempt to avoid his past self, brother, and girlfriends. I'll be tuning in next week.
Reaper: I caught the encore of the pilot and there were some serious laugh out loud moments. I really enjoyed it however half way through the episode I found myself getting bored despite the funny dialouge. I didn't catch the second episode and it looks like this series will be a "If I'm Bored I'll Watch" show that'll give me some chuckles.
Aliens in America: The pilot had some amusing bits and the premise has potential but it looks like it'll fall into the same category as Reaper.
Gossip Girl: I had no intention at all of watching this series. I one of those types that can get seriously turned off with over promotion of which this show would certainly fall under. I was also annoyed that CW would spend what appears to be almost all their marketing money to promote it. I understand that the network needs a break out hit epecially when their biggest ratings come from older shows but come on spread the love a bit. However I tuned in to the third episode "Poison Ivy" in hopes of catching a Smallville promo and I really enjoyed what I saw. I love the lead Serena and the dynamics between the dad, sister and the guy from the wrong side of the tracks. I think I'll be tuning in next week.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
So I was able to recently come into possession of several recordings of some older Canadian tv shows, sci-fi shows, and movies that featured the Forever Knight actors. A fellow fan made meticulously cared for recordings and had transfered her efforts onto DVD so she was offering her VHS tapes to fans on a first come first serve basis. She had so many of the shows and movies that I've been dying to see so placed in my requests and cross my fingers for luck.
I was excited to get Grand Larceny which feature Catherine Disher, a four episode arc that Deborah Duchene did on Side Effects and several movies featuring Geraint Wyn Davies and Nigel Bennett. I was bummed that I didn't get any Street Legal episodes epecially the two featuring Catherine Disher. A lot of the recordings were done off of TRIO which a few years ago was a satellite channel that offered Canadian programming for American audiences. Sadly the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) sold it and the programming switched. My parents used to have satellite when the CBC owned TRIO and I'd watch when I could hoping to catch a glimpse of the FK actors on Street Legal, The Littlest Hobo, and The Campbells. I never had any luck and it annoys me that I was so close yet so far. Apparently TRIO also aired Night Heat which also had a tiny guest sting by CD. It's unfortunately the CBC isn't really able to issue out their older shows on DVD. The television industry in Canada is vastly different then that of the US and it isn't exactly helped that so much American content is crossing over and is much for profitable then their homegrown dramas and comedies. They really do have some interesting stuff.
Anyhoo, I'm in the process of trying to get a few screen grabs up of the stuff I got. Catherine Disher is so gosh darn adorable in Grand Larceny, Deborah Duchene looks absolutely breathtaking in Broken Cord, Nigel Bennett is a riot in an episode of RoboCop, and I couldn't stop smiling at how great Geraint Wyn Davies looked in Dancing in the Dark.
Ok so the second episode of Moonlight wasn't exactly the worst thing ever, it did improve over the pilot, but there are still things about it that annoy.
Mick and Vampire 101:
So what's the first thing that completely baffled me about Mick in this episode? The fact that in 50 years he still has the same name, profession, and probably lives in the same place. Dude did you not recieve the Vampire's Guide for the Recently Undead or did you simply not bother to read it. The people around you will age but you'll stay the same meaning that as difficult as it may be you are going to have to sever ties to people who knew you after a couple of years. Yeah it sucks and you didn't choose to become a vampire but get with the program and play the hand you're dealt.
Now I know why the creators chose to have Mick be less than a century old because this guy lacks some crucial brain cells and common sense and it's going to get him exposed so fast he won't know what hit him. And seriously he needs to get himself a new BFF because if Mr. Paranoid Josef hasn't brought up these issues before then...
Mick was extremely fortunate that the old cop that he kept in touch with was blind. For a minute I thought he was going to be in on Mick's background and that would have annoyed. It's kind of like in Smallville when now everybody knows about Clark's secret except for Lex, Lois, and Jimmy. It was clever on the writer's part to have the cop be blind though and therefore unable to see that Mick hadn't aged.
The second thing that baffled me about Mick was his apparent lack of concern for his safety. He has got to have the worst security of any living in the real world onscreen vampire. I want to know more about that building Mick is living in because apparently just about anybody can waltz right in. What is this the Luthor Mansion in Smallville? Does he have neighbors? Does he own the building? Is it in an isolated locale or smack dab in the middle of downtown LA? I expected some kind of super sophisticated security system not just a video camera to see who's on the other side of the door when a simple peep hole would have sufficed there. You want a live to see another 100 years Mick get yourself a new setup.
All that being said a highlight for me was the end of the episode but not because it finally ended. I certainly felt the ol' heart strings being tugged in those last scenes with Beth when she walks into his apartment and he's feeding. Mick sees himself as a monster when it comes to what humans might think if they were to find out about what he is and his pleas for her to leave were really heartfelt. I like my vampires with the occassion hint of angst so that made me go yay. I realize people role their eyes at yet another angst filled vampire but I say bring'em on.
Flashbacks to that ancient time known as the 1980s:
This was hands down the best part of the episode. It cracked me up to no end. Whoo-Hoo! 1983 baby! Although fashion wise the clothing was filtered through the 2007 idea of 1983. I mean the clothes in the Nick Knight pilot screamed 80s and that one was set in 1989 Los Angeles. Heck the first season of Forever Knight screamed more 1980s than the ones in Moonlight. But those 80s fashions in general were pretty ugly so I can see why the Moonlight costume department would much rather downplay their awfulness. After all the music was the cue that told the audience what decade it was. But seriously I hope they start fleshing out Mick's past. Apparently he was all into Josef's lifestyle which isn't surprising since Josef was the guy that showed him the vampire ropes but next time let's keep the 80stastic girls at home with the "80s" music and show some actual Mick/Josef back story. "Hungry like the wolf" ::snort::
Will the real Josef please stand up:
Josef as seen it all vampire is totally not impressing me if he's failing to instill the vampire 101 in his young friend. He tells Mick that he knows someone who can set him up with a new identity midway through the episode. That information would have been good a few decades ago. Granted he's not Mick's keeper but they are friends. The proper percautions, at least home security wise, could have gone a long way in this episode.
GIven Josef's paranoia in the pilot, his "We Must Protect the Secret Mick!" mentatlity, coupled with his insistance that Mick do something to prevent it from getting out Josef in this episode was pretty lackadasial on the matter and treated exposure like a minor inconvenience. While I did find the delivery of Josef's line "You were on the news" very cute that's beside the point. Mick's involvement was being picked up by a lot of media outlets. That kind of exposure has got to be a big no-no for the vampire community. Beth works for an internet new organization. As they said in the episode their site had 2 million hits in one day. That means the story about Mick won't be limited to the Los Angeles area so anybody with computer access around the world would have seen Mick in his present incarnation. That might not expose vampires directly but could come back to bite him in the butt like the released convict in some future incarnation. I sincerely hope that in future episodes they shed some light on the dyamics within the vampire community because it needs to be addressed. Thankfully next week's episode is about a renegade vampire so I'm really excited for it. This show needs an Enforcers like entity like in Forever Knight. Even LaCroix would much rather not get mixed up with them.
The good:
This episode was better than the last although the recap of that episode almost made me want to shut the tape off there. Please don't make me relive it please.
What I found as this episode's strength was the story with the released killer. I liked the whole "I'm a killer and you've killed. What makes us so different?" thing. Plus I liked the way all the setups just completely rattled Mick. This came totally out of left field and put him on the defensive. I realize I've been pretty harsh towards Mick and Josef and this is only the second episode. If the show survives there will be plenty of time to explore some of the issues that I have problems with. This show has a lot of potential. The subject matter is busting at the seams with story ideas and the possibility for different spins on old story ideas. I'll more than likely catch the episode again so that I can go into further detail what did work for me in this episode. I am after all recording them on the off chance that I become obsessed with this show and can therefore revisit it from a real fangirl perspective.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
So the Fall 2007 has finished week two and shows are still not done premiering. Here's a status report:
Bionic Woman: I caught the pilot last week and wasn't all that impressed although I did love the evil Bionic Woman otherwise known as Starbuck from Battlestar Galactica. She was far more interesting to me than poor bland Britsh actor playing American #231. I've read that she's done some very nice work in her other projects but I fear that this time the material might be too overwhelming. Needless to say I didn't catch the second episode but I'll be following the scuttlebut and decide whether or not to revisit sometime during midseason. Sometimes actors and shows need time to establish themselves. Since NBC spent oodles promoting I hope they don't cancel too prematurely.
Journeyman: I love Quantum Leap. It was my first non-cartoon show back when I was younger, excluding all the Nickelodeon/Nick-at-Nite stuff I used to watch. So when I heard of this show I was immediately excited plus I loved Rome and Kevin McKidd was great as Lucius Vorenus on it. Unfortunately our NBC affiliate crapped out so I couldn't watch the pilot but I did watch the second episode "The Friendly Skies" and I really enjoyed it. The "leap" into the circa 1970s airplane complete with cabin filled smoke, crazy flight attendents, and the requisite period music was a real hoot as was Vorenus' attempt to avoid his past self, brother, and girlfriends. I'll be tuning in next week.
Reaper: I caught the encore of the pilot and there were some serious laugh out loud moments. I really enjoyed it however half way through the episode I found myself getting bored despite the funny dialouge. I didn't catch the second episode and it looks like this series will be a "If I'm Bored I'll Watch" show that'll give me some chuckles.
Aliens in America: The pilot had some amusing bits and the premise has potential but it looks like it'll fall into the same category as Reaper.
Gossip Girl: I had no intention at all of watching this series. I one of those types that can get seriously turned off with over promotion of which this show would certainly fall under. I was also annoyed that CW would spend what appears to be almost all their marketing money to promote it. I understand that the network needs a break out hit epecially when their biggest ratings come from older shows but come on spread the love a bit. However I tuned in to the third episode "Poison Ivy" in hopes of catching a Smallville promo and I really enjoyed what I saw. I love the lead Serena and the dynamics between the dad, sister and the guy from the wrong side of the tracks. I think I'll be tuning in next week.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
So I was able to recently come into possession of several recordings of some older Canadian tv shows, sci-fi shows, and movies that featured the Forever Knight actors. A fellow fan made meticulously cared for recordings and had transfered her efforts onto DVD so she was offering her VHS tapes to fans on a first come first serve basis. She had so many of the shows and movies that I've been dying to see so placed in my requests and cross my fingers for luck.
I was excited to get Grand Larceny which feature Catherine Disher, a four episode arc that Deborah Duchene did on Side Effects and several movies featuring Geraint Wyn Davies and Nigel Bennett. I was bummed that I didn't get any Street Legal episodes epecially the two featuring Catherine Disher. A lot of the recordings were done off of TRIO which a few years ago was a satellite channel that offered Canadian programming for American audiences. Sadly the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) sold it and the programming switched. My parents used to have satellite when the CBC owned TRIO and I'd watch when I could hoping to catch a glimpse of the FK actors on Street Legal, The Littlest Hobo, and The Campbells. I never had any luck and it annoys me that I was so close yet so far. Apparently TRIO also aired Night Heat which also had a tiny guest sting by CD. It's unfortunately the CBC isn't really able to issue out their older shows on DVD. The television industry in Canada is vastly different then that of the US and it isn't exactly helped that so much American content is crossing over and is much for profitable then their homegrown dramas and comedies. They really do have some interesting stuff.
Anyhoo, I'm in the process of trying to get a few screen grabs up of the stuff I got. Catherine Disher is so gosh darn adorable in Grand Larceny, Deborah Duchene looks absolutely breathtaking in Broken Cord, Nigel Bennett is a riot in an episode of RoboCop, and I couldn't stop smiling at how great Geraint Wyn Davies looked in Dancing in the Dark.